


You Break It, You Buy It

by campe-silky (SilkyinaBottle)



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Car Accidents, F/M, First Meetings, Fluff and Angst, Hospitals, M/M, Nikki and Neil are step-siblings, idk what else to call it, young adult au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-12
Updated: 2018-04-30
Packaged: 2019-03-30 05:05:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13943214
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilkyinaBottle/pseuds/campe-silky
Summary: Shit, that’s going to be on those hospital records for all eternity now. Neil Kravitz-Greenwood, the dipshit who hit some poor soul with his car and then thought it was okay to bring him fuckingapology flowersin the hospital a whole week later.“I’m just relieved someone’s visiting him at all,” David admits, before immediately covering his mouth, looking a little mortified. It would make Neil feel a little better if it weren’t for what he’d just said.“I’m sorry… what?”





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> what's up camp camp fans i'm coming @ u live with a longfic
> 
> i've got a plot outline already, i'm not quite sure how many chapters it's gonna end up being, but definitely more than just this one
> 
> i'm partway through chapter two at this point, but updates will generally occur a few days after i put out a one-shot, since i'm just working on a bunch of camp camp fics concurrently at this point

In retrospect, maybe Neil should have pulled over when he started to feel himself shake. That really would have been a good idea. Or maybe he just could have waited and had the panic attack _before_ he got in the car. That would have sucked, sure, because he would have had to hole himself up in the tiny bathroom of his office building and cry and cry until he could hardly breathe, and _then_ he would have had to walk past all of his co-workers with his “obviously-just-cried-in-the-bathroom” face on, but that humiliating hypothetical still would have been better than what actually happened.

So what actually happened? He hit someone with his car, that’s what fucking happened.

Maybe, if he could actually go back in time and fix this mess in the first place, he’d tell himself not to check his phone until he got home. Then he wouldn’t have seen the texts from his mother, and he wouldn’t have panicked in the first place.

The first texts she’s sent to him in years. The first time she’s tried to _talk_ to him in years. A request to catch up. Knowing her, she probably just wanted to know “whether or not you’ve gotten over that gay thing already.” And knowing his mother, if he didn’t reply, she might just decide to “pay him a visit” out of the blue. Obviously that was the worst case scenario, but it didn’t make talking to her any easier.

Or, at least, Neil thought it was the worst case scenario until he had a panic attack on the road and _hit someone with his car._

It was a boy, only a few years younger than him at most. Neil knows his name is Max Howlader, and he knows he’s staying at the hospital across town, and… that’s about it. Every time he’s thought about pursuing more information or, god forbid, _visiting_ him, his hands start to shake and he chickens out before he can even type his name in the search bar.

And the more time that passes, the guiltier he feels. He doesn’t even know how bad the injuries are. Probably pretty bad, if he’s staying in the hospital. God, he’d probably be so pissed if Neil decided to visit him _now._

Or, well, that’s what _he_ thinks. His step-sister clearly has other thoughts on the matter. “You haven’t even _visited him_ yet?!” Nikki slams her hands on Neil’s kitchen table in a way that’s a little too dramatic for his tastes. “Neil!”

“He probably doesn’t want his _assaulter_ visiting him in the hospital, Nikki,” he sighs, placing a glass of orange juice in front of her and trying not to look as ashamed as he feels.

“You don’t know that!” she cries, and her speech loses a little bit of its impact when she takes a pause to take a few gulps from the glass. “Maybe he’s always wanted to be hit by a car and you just let him cross something off of his bucket list! He might thank you!”

“...Somehow, I doubt that.”

She pouts at him. “Still, you should at least apologize. Buy him some flowers or something.”

“He might not like flowers,” Neil points out, talking a little too fast. “Or maybe he’s allergic. There’s too much risk. I should probably just go without the flowers. Or not go at all, just to be safe.”

Her pout gets poutier. “You’re making excuses again…!”

“I know, okay?!” he cries, finally taking a seat across from her. “I know. I mean, obviously I _should_ visit him, it’s just that every time I start to think about it—”

“You get all shaky and nervous like you usually do?”

“Yeah,” he points at her, “that. I mean, what if he hates me?” He leans forward and buries his face in his hands. “He probably should, considering I, you know, _hit him with my car._ ”

Nikki shrugs. “I’d forgive somebody if they did that,” she says.

Neil peels his hands away from his face and gives her a hard stare. “You’re not really a good standard for normalcy, Nikki. You know that, right?”

She pouts and looks away, her hands fidgeting around her glass of orange juice. “Well, okay, yeah… But he’s gonna think you’re even _more_ of a jerk if you hit him with your car and never apologize for it!”

He worries his bottom lip between his teeth. “I’ve thought about that… trust me.” He’s thought about nearly every possible outcome at this point, he thinks. Very few of them are good. Most of them end in him being chewed out by angry family members or being dragged out of the hospital by the authorities.

“And the longer you put it off, the worse you’re gonna feel,” Nikki tells him, closing her eyes taking a sage-like sip of orange juice. It suits her, strangely enough.

Neil sighs. “...Yeah. I know.” He’s learned that from years of experience, and Nikki’s learned from years of experience that pointing this out is the easiest way to wear him down. It’s times like these that he really wishes Nikki didn’t know him so well. Why can’t they just awkwardly hate each other like most step-siblings do?

“So…?” Nikki looks at him expectantly.

“...So I’ll visit him tomorrow.”

“And you’ll buy him flowers,” Nikki adds.

“What?” He sits up a little straighter and shoots a glare at her. “Nikki, I told you, no.”

She grins a little; not only is this look familiar, but it’s a look Neil doesn’t trust. “You said he’s around our age, right? Maybe he’s cute!”

“Yeah,” Neil says, rolling his eyes, “and maybe he’s also straight. You’re also forgetting the part where I hit him with my car.”

“Details!” Nikki cries. “Besides, I don’t think we’ve met a straight person since, like, forever. Why would he be the one to break the streak?”

Neil isn’t so convinced. Besides, he’s still a little focused on the car accident part. “I’ve met plenty of straight people,” he tells her. Unfortunately. “It wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for me.”

“Well, that just means I’ll have to meet him, too!”

He sputters a little. “Wha—Nikki, whether or not you meet him isn’t going to _change_ his sexuality!”

She rests her chin in one hand. “Now that you say it like that, I guess it does sound _kinda_ weird…” Just like everything she says, Neil thinks. But he doesn’t say it out loud, of course. He doesn’t think he could risk hurting Nikki’s feelings like that. After a few more moments of contemplation, she sits up and smiles. “Well, whatever! I’m sure I’m right!”

Neil sighs and starts to stand up. There’s just no reasoning with her… “Hey, I’ll give you money for the flowers!” she calls out to him as he heads towards his room.

“Whatever,” he mutters. “Just get out of here by the time I’m done freaking out.” He wonders if he should feel bad for that, but then again, he and Nikki both know he’ll be freaking out all day.

 

Still, when he finally does drag himself out of his room again, forty-five minutes past ten, there’s twenty dollars on the kitchen table and a note reminding him that he can do it if he stops being such a wimp. _“Just think about what I would do!”_

Neil can’t help but laugh a little. Yeah, that sounds like a plan. Think about what he wants to do, think about what Nikki would do, and then pick the healthy medium.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> look, that didn't even take me a week!!
> 
> honestly, though, i did plan on this chapter encompassing the whole first hospital visit, but it ended up being a little longer than i anticipated, and i think i'm alright with stretching this first visit out into two chapters since it's so important. i hope you guys enjoy it!!

Why did he think that factoring what  _ Nikki  _ would do into his decision-making at all was a good idea? The fluorescent lights above his head keep flickering, the hospital hallway is chilly, and his hands are sweating so badly he’s afraid he’s going to drop the bouquet (peonies, lavender, and lilacs). He had to talk to at least six people just to  _ get  _ to this point, and every single one of them was overbearingly sweet to him; so sweet that he worried they were only being nice because it’s their job. God, probably.

Neil’s been waiting in the hall outside of Max’s room for… he checks the clock. Three minutes. He’s been waiting for three minutes now, even though he was so sure it had been at least fifteen. Either way, he’s supposed to wait here for Max’s nurse to show up so he can be briefed before going in to visit him, which sounds absolutely terrifying. He’s just here to shove some flowers at him, what does he need to be told?

He’s counting the flowers in the bouquet and trying to stop his hands from shaking when he hears footsteps approaching in the hallway. He jumps a little and fumbles with the bouquet, but manages not to drop it as a tall, smiling, redheaded man stops in front of him. “I’m guessing you’re Neil…,” he glances at his clipboard, “Kravitz?”

“Kravitz-Greenwood,” Neil corrects, on instinct, and immediately he wants to hit himself. It’s not even that important. Why did he bring it up?

But the nurse just smiles wider and scribbles something down on his clipboard. “Kravitz-Greenwood, got it! Sorry about that, they just love to cut those hyphenated last names short!” He tucks the clipboard under his arm and holds out a hand for Neil to shake. “Anyways, it’s very nice to meet you, Neil! I’m David, and I’m Max’s nurse. Oh, well, but you probably already guessed that!”

Neil shifts the bouquet to his left hand and shakes David’s with his right, hoping his skin isn’t too clammy. “Y-yeah… nice to meet you, too…” God, could he have given a less cookie cutter answer?

David doesn’t seem to mind, though. Or maybe he does and he’s just really, really good at not showing it. He takes his clipboard back out and clicks his pen. “Now, how do you know Max?”

“Ah.”  _ Shit.  _ He should have thought of this. His brain rapidly searches for a believable lie, or at least a more gentle way of wording the truth, but he’s seen enough TV to know how that shit can snowball, and he’s starting to feel sort of threatened by the way David just keeps on staring at him and  _ smiling,  _ sort of expectantly, like he already fucking knows and is just waiting for Neil to tell him, just spit it out, just say it say it  _ say it—  _ “I’m the one who hit him with my car.” God fucking dammit.

David pauses for just a moment, looking sort of surprised, but he quickly writes it down. Or at least, Neil  _ assumes _ that’s what he’s writing down. Shit, that’s going to be on those hospital records for all eternity now. Neil Kravitz-Greenwood, the dipshit who hit some poor soul with his car and then thought it was okay to bring him fucking  _ apology flowers  _ in the hospital a whole week later.

“Well, that’s alright,” David says as he finishes. “Happens to all of us at some point!”

_ Does it REALLY.  _ Well, Neil forces a smile and tries to nod. He probably looks ridiculous.

“I’m just relieved someone’s visiting him at all,” he admits, before immediately covering his mouth, looking a little mortified. It would make Neil feel a little better if it weren’t for what he’d just said.

“I’m sorry… what?”

David squirms, as if he isn’t sure if he should continue, but he does anyways. “Well… it’s just that… you’re the first visitor Max has gotten.”

Neil stares at him, probably for a little longer than he should. That… can’t be right. “I’m the first visitor,” he repeats, the words feeling wrong on his tongue. “Are… are you sure?”

After a moment, David nods, looking sheepish. “The very first. Not even his parents have stopped by?”

“And…,” he’s still struggling to wrap his head around this, “what, no other family?”

“No one,” David repeats. “No family, no friends… No one at all.” He holds his hands up suddenly, waving them back and forth almost frantically. “Oh, but I’m not supposed to be telling you this! That’s… it’s confidential information. My lips are sealed.” Despite the fact that he’s already told Neil everything. Still, he makes a zipping-his-lips-and-locking-them-up motion and sticks the imaginary key in the not-so-imaginary shirt pocket of his uniform.

Neil blinks at this display. “...Right.” Somehow, he sees himself getting more information out of David in the future. Even if he’s not trying to get it.

A smile crosses David’s face, as if he’s sort of proud of himself, but it only lasts for a moment. “But just between you and me…,” yep, here it comes, “I really appreciate your visiting.” Oh, or maybe not. “I’ve been really worried about him. I mean, his healing process has been nothing but smooth sailing, but… he’s just distant. I can hardly get him to talk to me.”

Well. That’s a bad sign. All this time he imagined he’d get chased out by angry parents, but it turns out it’s more likely that he’ll get chased out by Max himself. Verbally, of course, seeing as he’s probably confined to his hospital bed.

The stress must show on his face (it always does), because David gives him a reassuring smile and stands up a little straighter. “Oh, but you shouldn’t worry! I’m sure you’ll have better luck!”

Neil wants to ask why, but he bites it back and just nods instead. He’s sure he would just sound like he’s got a bunch of needless attitude. Older people always seem to think he’s ungrateful, or obnoxious, or stuck-up, or whatever else. Probably because he is. Or just because his attempts to avoid socializing make him look like he’s ignoring people. ...Which he  _ is,  _ sometimes, but only when it becomes necessary.

The sound of pencil scratching against paper drags him back into reality, and he glances up to see David making one last check mark on his clipboard. “Alrighty then, I think we’re ready!”

That single sentence is enough to send Neil into a state of complete panic, but he tries to internalize it. This is fine. He’s going to be fine. He’s going to walk in there and introduce himself to Max, and it isn’t going to be a complete disaster.

...It doesn’t sound like the truth, but he thinks it anyways.

David leads him into the room, and Neil is immediately struck by how bare it looks. Before he knew, he imagined the room would be filled with get well gifts, adding a burst of pigment to an otherwise colorless room. Reality is much bleaker. Much more grey and white and lifeless-looking.

And sitting in the middle of it is Max… or who he assumes is Max, anyways. He really didn’t get a good look at him during the incident—he avoided looking at him at all, mostly out of guilt—but what little he remembers of Max definitely matches up with this person. Same skin tone, same general hair shape… He’s a little more bruised than Neil remembers, and a little less bloody, but it’s probably him. That, and he’s the only person in this room, so that narrows it down a lot.

He turns to look when the door opens, and his eyes narrow when David walks in. It looks like he’s about to say something, but he goes quiet when his eyes land on Neil. Neil freezes up almost instantly, feeling oddly like he’s being inspected.

“You have a visitor!” David announces, smiling widely, right as Max asks, “Who the fuck is this?” Neil only feels himself grow tenser. Yep, he’s gonna get kicked out by this guy who will probably hold a grudge on him for the rest of his life and these flowers he picked out are totally going to go to waste.

David doesn’t seem too phased by the question, but he does tense a little when Max curses. “This is Neil,” he says, and Neil is ridiculously grateful. He’s always been awful at introducing himself. “He was involved in the incident and came to send his regards.” God, that sounds so much better than,  _ “I hit you with my car and I came to say sorry.” _

Unfortunately, Max has already figured out that those two statements mean the same thing. He narrows his eyes at Neil again, and Neil’s suddenly hyperaware of a white bandage that appears to be covering a split in his left eyebrow. That’s probably not the right thing to focus on right now, but it’s all he can look at. “So you’re the jackass who hit me with your car?”

Shit. But yeah, that’s pretty much what he expected. David immediately jumps to his defense, though, and Neil’s not sure if he should feel grateful or embarrassed. “Now, Max, there’s no need to be rude! He came here to apologize!”

“No, no, it’s fine!” Neil cuts in, mostly because he’s afraid of hearing Max respond to that. “I can just… I’ll give him the flowers and get out of here, it’s not a big deal—”

David opens his mouth, surely to argue more, but both of them fall silent when Max holds up a hand and says, “Wait.” It looks like he has to force himself to speak; Neil isn’t sure if it’s because he doesn’t want to say this or if it’s just because of how beat up he is. “You can stick around,” he finally gets out, sighing slightly. “For a little while. I should probably chew you out for this, anyways.”

Well, that doesn’t sound great, but it’s certainly better than getting kicked out. And with the way David lights up, it seems he agrees. “Oh, Max, that’s great! Here, I’ll—”

“Just leave before I change my mind, David,” Max bites out. David nods and swiftly makes his way out of the room, but he doesn’t look any less cheerful than he did just a moment before.

“So…” Now he’s alone with this guy he’s never met before. This guy whose bones he broke and whose face he bruised. With his  _ car. _

Max stares up at him with hooded eyes and points to a chair near his bed. There’s a cast around his right wrist that Neil hadn’t noticed before, and oh god, now he feels about a thousand times worse. But before he can focus on it for two long, Max tells him, “Sit. And shut up.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here's an extra long chapter since i know you guys have had to wait!! enjoy!

So Neil sits down and shuts up, obviously, because doing otherwise would likely guarantee his swift and painful death. Or at least, that’s what the look in Max’s eyes is telling him. Neil has met some terrifying people in his life, but Max is probably somewhere in the top ten, he thinks. But maybe that’s just the anxiety talking.

“David said your name was Neil, right?” Max asks, surprising him a little. He didn’t think Max would give him even that much courtesy. He doesn’t think he deserves it, honestly.

When he doesn’t answer for a while, Max starts to look impatient, and Neil scrambles to force words out of his mouth. “Uh, yeah. Neil. That’s… that’s my name.”

“Jesus, you don’t have to freak out,” he mutters, rolling his eyes. “You’re so pathetic, you’re making me feel bad for being pissed at you.” Neil doesn’t know how to respond to that, and so he just fiddles with the flowers in his lap. The plastic wrap around them crinkles loudly, drawing Max’s attention. “Those are for me, I’m guessing.”

“Um… yeah. Yeah, they are.” Neil holds them up a little, unsure of where to put them.

Max waves his not-broken hand. “Just put them wherever. I’m sure David’s gonna go out of his fucking way to get a vase for them or whatever.”

Slowly, Neil lowers the bouquet until it’s resting in his lap again. “Do you… not like David?” He seemed nice enough to Neil. A little over-enthusiastic maybe, but he’d rather have a nurse that cares too much than a nurse that doesn’t care at all.

“He’s just fucking annoying,” Max explains, staring at the pristine white hospital bed sheets. “He’s gotten way too invested in my happiness or whatever.”

“Well, yeah,” Neil says. “He’s a medical professional. Isn’t that his job?” When Max glares at him, he shrinks a little. “Sorry.” That was a little out of line, wasn’t it?

“His  _ job  _ is to make sure I’m  _ healthy, _ ” Max says firmly. “What he’s doing is being fucking nosy. It’s obnoxious.” Neil still doesn’t see the problem here, but he nods and pretends he understands regardless. It’ll probably be easier to get along with him this way.

Conversation slows to a halt after that, and Neil can’t help but think back to what David had told him earlier. Max’s first visitor… He glances around the room again, trying to take in any sight he can, but it’s still unbearably empty. The only thing he can find to stare at is the brace keeping Max’s left leg elevated, but he’s afraid of offending him by looking at it for too long. He wonders if it’s broken. It’s not in a cast, so probably not. Sprained, maybe? He’d feel a little less awful if it was sprained.

Eventually he finds he has to ask. If he doesn’t bring it up, they’re just going to sit here in awkward silence, and that’s probably worse. “...So, uh, your room is really empty,” he points out.

Max raises an eyebrow at him (not the one with a split in it; that would probably hurt). “Yeah? It’s a hospital room, not a fucking college dorm.”

“I—no, wait, that’s not what I meant,” he tries to explain. “I mean, I just expected to see some get well presents or something. Especially, since you’re… you know…,” he gestures at him, “this bad off.” Oh my god someone needs to tape his mouth shut.

Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately), Max does not kill him instantly. Then again, Neil’s not sure how he would. He does look a little tense as he answers, though, which just assures Neil that he’s pissed him off even worse. “My parents are overseas for work stuff,” he says, and Neil can’t help but notice it sounds rehearsed. “And it’s too important for them to come over and check on my sorry ass.”

Neil can’t believe that. He just can’t. “Even when I fucked you up this badly?” Shit, he did it again. He slaps a hand over his mouth, but Max actually lets out a dry laugh.

“Yeah, you did. But no, it’s a big deal, apparently.” He shrugs, as if it’s no big deal, but his tone is distinctively and unmistakably bitter. “Whatever. They’ll be back in a few months.”

“Well…,” this can’t be right, “what about your friends?”

Max huffs and rolls his eyes, as if Neil is some kind of idiot. He probably is. “Yeah, I don’t have those.”

He has to stop himself from saying,  _ “Relatable,”  _ because he’s pretty sure that would really push Max’s buttons, and it’s not even true, anyways. Neil has friends, even if he sometimes feels like he doesn’t deserve them. “You don’t have any friends at all,” he repeats in disbelief.

Max shrugs again, but he’s staring at the hospital bed with a certain intensity that tells Neil this is a touchy subject. “They’re too much of a bother. Never needed them.”

“...Okay, yeah,” Neil sighs. He’s familiar with this behavior. He used to act like this as a way to cope with the fact that he just had trouble making friends in the first place. Luckily, he had Nikki to pull him out of it. Maybe it’s not the same for Max, but if it is, it’s probably a good idea for him to have someone around to help him through it too, right? And at least then he’d have one friend. Probably two, if Nikki insists on butting her head in, which she surely will.

...But if that’s his game plan, there’s still something he needs to get out of the way. “Are you still planning on telling me off?” he asks, forcing himself to maintain eye contact with Max (or, well, look at him, since Max isn’t looking back, so maybe it doesn’t quite count as “eye contact”).

Max turns his head to look at him, and stares for a long while. “I get the feeling you were already telling yourself off for the past week.” Damn, is he that easy to read? Apparently, because Max sees the look on his face and nods. “Yeah, that’s what I figured. I mean, I could say whatever shit about how you’re a dumbass and you should have watched where you’re going and how you’re a dick for not showing up earlier, but it wouldn’t be anything you don’t already know.” He stares straight ahead and shrugs. “I’d prefer not to waste my breath.”

“...Right,” he mumbles, his eyes darting back down to the flowers. He knew this was an awful idea.

It’s quiet for a few more moments, the conversation dead once more, before the door swings open again. Neil’s a little relieved to see David walk in, wearing a bright smile and carrying with him a glass vase, but Max seems a lot less pleased. “Alright, I’ve got this for your flowers…” When Neil offers him the bouquet to take, he beams and sets the vase down by the windowsill. “Ah, thank you, Neil!” He accepts it and arranges the flowers in the vase, quickly filling it with water from a pitcher kept by Max’s bedside. “Are you two having a good time?” he asks. “Need me to get you anything?”

Neil is about to answer, but he’s wholly unsurprised when Max beats him to it. “Fuck off, David. You’re not my dad.”

His smile falters only briefly. “I didn’t mean to coddle you, Max, I just wanted to know if you or your friend wanted—”

“We’re fucking fine! We just want to be left alone for five goddamn seconds!”

David nods and quickly turns on his heel to leave. “Yes, of course. If you need me, you know how to ring for me!” He’s gone before Neil can say a word to object; not that he was going to, anyways.

As soon as he’s disappeared, Max huffs. “I’m not sure how I’m going to keep on dealing with him on my own,” he sighs, and Neil can tell just from his tone that he’s got a headache coming on. Not that it probably means much, what with all the other pain he’s in.

There’s a significant pause, in which Neil isn’t at all sure what to say, and then Max looks at him pointedly. “What?” he asks, completely on instinct.

“I just said, I don’t know how I’m going to deal with him on my own,” Max repeats, a little firmer than before.

“Oh. Well.” He lowers his voice a little. “I mean, I don’t think he’s that bad…”

“That’s…,” Max looks a little tenser than before. “That doesn’t matter. You’re free to think whatever, I don’t give a shit. That’s not what I meant.”

Neil blinks, trying to decipher the riddle that’s just been presented to him. “...Okay? I mean, I thought you made it pretty clear that you don’t like him—”

“How I feel about him isn’t the point!” he cries, making Neil draw back a little. “I just… If you…,” he stares at his lap as he struggles to make words, “...if you’re fucking…  _ insistent  _ on coming back, you can do it, as long as it means I’m getting contact with someone other than David.”

“I… didn’t insist,” Neil points out, but he shuts up when Max shoots him with a glare. Okay, point taken.

In fact, Max seems to be content to pretend he didn’t say anything at all. “Being around him just makes me feel like I’m choking on rainbows,” he explains, staring down at his bed sheets again, “He acts like he’s in a fucking Disney movie. I could use a goddamn change of pace.” He glances up at Neil from underneath his eyelashes (they’re long, and really dark, and  _ god  _ Neil really is gay). “If you’re the best I’m gonna get, then so fucking be it, I guess.” He throws up his uninjured hand in defeat.

But honestly, how the hell is he supposed to respond to this? Max clearly doesn’t want him around, but he’s inviting him to come back again? He’s never been pelted with so many mixed messages. “I…” He swallows the lump in his throat and wills himself to speak properly. “Yeah, sure, if you want.” Maybe this way he can assess his answer and come to a clearer understanding of Max’s feelings.

Unfortunately, Max seems to be determined to be completely unhelpful. “It isn’t about what I  _ want. _ It’s about keeping me from fucking losing it in this place.”

“Uh… okay,” he rises to his feet, finally feeling his fight-or-flight reflex kick in (god, it took long enough). “Yeah, I’ll… I’ll come again,” fuck, and now he’s going to have to make good on that promise, or he’ll feel awful forever, “but I’m, um. Late for something now.” Fuck, that was so bad. There’s no way Max will ever believe that.

Some otherworldly force must be smiling down on Neil for once, though, because Max just shrugs and says, “‘Kay. See you.” Either he actually believed Neil’s awful lie, or he’s choosing to be merciful.

Either way, Neil is grateful, and he smiles (genuinely!) and waves at Max as he books it right out of there. He doesn’t get a wave back, but oh well. Better luck next time.

...Fuck, there’s going to be a “next time”.

 

“Was he cute? Tell me he was cute.”

“Oh my god, Nikki…” Neil rests his cheek on the cool countertop of Nikki’s bedroom desk, and then he prompts sits straight up, because who  _ knows  _ how dirty that thing might be. Only Nikki, probably. “We talked about this.”

Nikki nods, and for a brief second Neil is tricked into believing she actually understands. “We did! But that was before you brought him flowers!”

It’s Nikki, he thinks as he rolls his eyes. No point in arguing; he’s just going to have to give in. “He was all bruised from when I hit him with my car, Nikki. I don’t think I could have even figured out if he was cute.”

She pouts. “You weren’t trying hard enough.”

“Maybe because I was thinking more about how to make sure he didn’t hate me!”

“Did he?” she immediately shoots back.

There’s a hesitation, only because he doesn’t want her to be right. “No… He invited me to come back. He was kind of…,” an asshole, “really grumpy, though.”

“Wait.” Nikki holds her hands up. “Was he grumpy because you were there, or is that just how he is?”

“Oh, it was definitely a personality thing. But I could have just been exacerbating it, I don’t know.” He sighs and rests his chin in his palm. “I just don’t know—”

“Nikki!” An overly-loud voice sounds from behind the door, and Nikki gets to her feet just as a familiar face sticks her ponytailed head into the room. “Ah!  _ There  _ you are.” Her eyes meet Neil’s for a split second. “Oh, is your  _ brother _ he—”

But she doesn’t get to finish that second before Nikki kicks the door all the way open and starts planting kisses all over her face. Neil blocks his vision off and turns away. Nikki’s always a little too openly affectionate with her girlfriend. “Fifi! I missed you!”

“ _ Yes,  _ dear, I know, you  _ always  _ do…” At least someone’s showing some decency. Not that she normally hesitates around Neil. Maybe she’s coming to her senses for once.

Neil dares to glance back over, though, and he’s relieved to find they’ve separated themselves a little. “So, how was practice?” Nikki asks, and he has to tune Fifi out as she goes into a long-winded and over-dramatic explanation of how her day went.

After a few minutes of this, he finally decides to pick himself up and try to squeeze himself past them through the doorway. He was hoping to give them a little bit of time to talk before Nikki came back to him, but Fifi quickly grabs his wrist as he slips by them. No personal space, that one. “Neil, you don’t have to  _ leave!” _

“I was really just going to wait in the kitchen while you two talked,” he explains, squirming his hand out of her grip.

She pouts, her golden eyes shining. “Well, at  _ least  _ let me make you some  _ tea.” _

“Yeah, Neil!” Nikki agrees—she’s still attached to her girlfriend’s arm. “Let Fifi make you some tea and tell her all about your new  _ boyfriend!” _

This is exactly what he was afraid of. He winces, hoping to curl up into a tiny ball, as Fifi’s eyes grow wide and sparkling. “You have a  _ boyfriend,  _ Neil?!” She snatches one of his hands and holds it close to her chest. “Why didn’t you  _ tell  _ me?!”

“Because he’s not my boyfriend,” he explains, trying to squirm away from her touch again. “We literally just met yesterday, Nikki’s exaggerating.”

“Well, yeah, but you  _ could  _ be boyfriends.”

“I’m not counting on it!” he cries. Fifi’s looks a little surprised at his sudden outburst, and her grip loosens just enough for him to yank his hands away again. “My romantic future is not going to lie with the guy I just about  _ maimed  _ with my car!”

“Oh…” Fifi stares at him blankly.  _ “He’s _ the one you hit with your car…?” For a moment, Neil is convinced someone is going to make sense for once, but that hope is quickly squashed when a sappy smile takes over Fifi’s face. “Oh, Neil, that is so  _ romantic!  _ Ugh, I  _ love  _ it!” She swiftly links her arm with Neil’s and starts guiding him towards the kitchen with quick, even steps. “You have to tell me  _ everything.  _ It’s  _ only _ fair!”

“What?” He tries to get away from her again, but it’s no use. “How is it only fair?”

A little huff of a laugh escapes her, as if the answer is  _ obvious.  _ “Because you’ve told Nikki  _ everything,  _ and I haven’t heard a single  _ word  _ about this!”

Neil casts a glance over his shoulder, hoping for some assistance, but… yeah, she’s just grinning at him and shrugging, as if there’s nothing she can do to reign her girlfriend in. Figures. Honestly, Nikki and Fifi are both such unstoppable forces of nature that it just makes sense for them to be together. He just wishes he didn’t get caught up in their whirlwind quite so often.


End file.
